A class to train unemployed workers for “green jobs” in energy efficiency and renewable energy occupations will begin May 16 at East Central University. Twenty participants will be accepted for the class which is funded by an “Oklahoma Green” grant awarded to ECU.

By next August, Betty Ely Parham will have worked 65 years in the credit profession, all in Ada. This Thursday [MAY 5] she will be named the Entrepreneur of the Year at East Central University’s annual Leonard Limes Endowed Lecture in Entrepreneurship.

“I didn’t even know how to spell it,” Parham said with a laugh. “I’m just a small town business owner.”

East Central University’s Veterans Workforce Investment Program will offer a Green Pre-Construction Trades Academy through May 27 through a partnership with the Western Oklahoma Electrical Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee at 1700 S.E. 15 in Oklahoma City.

A free class on May 12 and 13 will certify eligible Muskogee-area veterans to work for contractors performing renovation, repair and painting projects that disturb lead-based paint.

The Veterans Workforce Investment Program at East Central University in Ada has joined with the Oklahoma Association of Community Action Agencies to offer the EPA Lead-Safe Certification Program at the Muskogee Workforce Office at 717 S. 32nd St.

East Central University's mission is to foster a learning environment in which students, faculty, staff, and community
interact to educate students for life in a rapidly changing and culturally diverse society. Within its service area,
East Central University provides leadership for economic development and cultural enhancement.